Moving your food blog from Blogger to WordPress

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A while back, we covered the basics of launching your food blog. But what if you were part of the first wave of pioneers who launched from Blogger back in 1999? Is the process the same? And are you going to lose your coveted Google ranking when you move your content from Blogger to WordPress?

Is the process of moving a blog the same as launching a blog?

The answer is a succinct: kind of.

You’ve still got to set up your new blog on WordPress, which includes finding a WordPress hosting company, purchasing your domain name, and installing WordPress on your hosting account. (You can get step-by-step instructions from that November blog post).

Once you’re done, however, you’ll need to move your previous content over, which we’ll talk about in just a minute.

Am I going to lose my Google ranking by moving from Blogger to WordPress?

Not if you move the content correctly.

So how do I move the content from Blogger to WordPress?

To export your content from Blogger to WordPress:

Log into your Blogger dashboard and go to Settings > Other.
Select Export blog from Blog Tools.
On the resulting popup box, click Download Blog.

You’re done! Your Blogger content is now residing on your computer as an XML file.

To import your content to WordPress:

Log into your WordPress dashboard and go to Tools > Import.
Click on Blogger.
On the resulting popup box, click Install.
When WordPress has finished downloading and installing the Blogger Importer plugin, click on Activate Plugin and Run Importer.
When prompted by the Import Blogger dialog box, upload the XML file that you downloaded from Blogger.
Once you’ve chosen and the XML file, click Upload file and import.
After the files have been uploaded, assign an author account to the posts.

But how will readers find me once I’ve moved?

Redirecting users from your Blogger to your WordPress site:

This is the critical step when it comes to maintaining your Google ranking, so don’t skip it. By redirecting traffic from Blogger, you’ll ensure that fans who attempt to access the old site will land on the correct page on the new site. They won’t even notice the redirect if it’s done properly!

Open your Blogger dashboard and choose Templates.
Scroll down to Revert to Classic Templates and select.
Copy and paste the following template into your Blogger template editor, replacing http://aweseomefoodblog.com/ with your new WordPress food blog’s URL.
Save.

Redirect Snippet

<html>
<head>
<title><$BlogPageTitle$></title>
<script>
<MainOrArchivePage>
window.location.href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/”
</MainOrArchivePage>
<Blogger><ItemPage>
window.location.href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/?blogger=<$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>”
</ItemPage></Blogger>
</script>
<MainPage>
<link rel=”canonical” href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/” />
</MainPage>
<Blogger>
<ItemPage>
<link rel=”canonical” href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/?blogger=<$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>” />
</ItemPage>
</Blogger>
</head>
<body>
<MainOrArchivePage>
<h1><a href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/”><$BlogTitle$></a></h1>
</MainOrArchivePage>
<Blogger>
<ItemPage>
<h1><a href=”http://awesomefoodblog.com/?blogger=<$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>”><$BlogItemTitle$></a></h1>
<$BlogItemBody$>
</ItemPage>
</Blogger>
</body>
</html>

What about my followers who have subscribed to my blog via RSS Feed?

Redirecting your RSS Feed from Blogger to WordPress:

Go to Blogger > Settings > Other.
Select Post Feed Redirect URL under Site Feed.
Enter the web address of your new WordPress RSS Feed.

Tada!

It is a little bit of work, but it will be entirely worth it to gain complete control over your blog. If you’re having trouble with the move or the very thought of pasting a code snippet makes you want to toss the idea of making the big switch, get in touch with us at OnceCoupled. It’s what we do.

Why are you considering the move from Blogger to WordPress?